Gujarat Farmers Embrace Sexed Semen for 91% Female Calf Births

He produces approximately 250 litres of milk daily. Until recently, he used to worry that when a cow or buffalo became pregnant, if a male calf was born, how he would bear the cost of raising it.

However, this concern has now been resolved. By using sexed semen technology for artificial insemination in his animals, all six of his cows gave birth only to female calves.

"Due to this new technology introduced by the government, we have benefited greatly. With the birth of male calves being avoided, maintenance costs have reduced. Moreover, milk production has increased, and within just two years, the female calves start producing milk, which boosts our income. Now I am using this technology regularly," said Momin, explaining the benefits of sexed semen technology.

Livestock farmers often worry whether a cow or buffalo will give birth to a male calf, which is less economically beneficial. However, farmers in Gujarat are now being freed from this concern.

The Animal Husbandry Department of the Gujarat government has made significant efforts to promote the use of sexed semen technology, achieving notable success. Advances in scientific methods now allow for the birth of female calves with up to 90 per cent accuracy.

The state has established the "Gujarat Bovine Semen Sexing Institute" in Patan. A project for producing 800,000 sexed semen doses was approved by the Government of India in 2018-19, with 60 per cent funding from the Centre and 40 per cent from the state. Production began in June 2021, and by February 2026, the institute had completed production of 800,000 doses.

By February 2026, about 341,000 doses had been used through the field offices of the Animal Husbandry Department. This resulted in 63,439 pregnancies, leading to the birth of 37,469 calves. Of these, only 3,285 were male, while 34,184 were female, indicating a success rate of approximately 91.23 per cent female births.

Sexed semen technology is revolutionising animal husbandry and dairy production by enabling farmers to predetermine the sex of offspring. Farmers can now ensure that cows and buffaloes give birth predominantly to female calves.

What is Sexed Semen? Naturally, male semen contains two types of chromosomes: "X" and "Y". The "Y" chromosome results in male offspring, the "X" chromosome results in female offspring

Under normal conditions, the probability of male or female birth is roughly 50:50. However, sexed semen technology scientifically separates or deactivates specific chromosomes, allowing the production of frozen semen doses that can ensure female births with around 90 per cent accuracy.

The use of sexed semen significantly reduces the birth of male calves, thereby lowering the cost of feed and maintenance. Female calves contribute to milk production within a few years, increasing farmers' income. It also reduces the need to purchase animals from outside, minimising the risk of disease transmission.

Farmers can further earn by selling surplus female calves. The technology also accelerates genetic improvement in livestock.

Additionally, advanced breeding techniques such as Progeny Testing (PT), Embryo Transfer (ET), and In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) have become more effective due to this innovation.

The production cost of one sexed semen dose is Rs 710. However, to ensure accessibility, the government initially charged farmers Rs 300 per dose, which has now been reduced to just Rs 50 per dose. Farmers can avail artificial insemination services through departmental field offices at this highly subsidised rate.

Milk unions across the state are also producing sexed semen doses and offering artificial insemination services at nominal costs.

During 2025-26, Gujarat's milk unions produced 709,000 sexed frozen semen doses and carried out 335,000 inseminations. This resulted in 52,246 pregnancies and 30,719 births, of which 24,968 (around 81 per cent) were female calves.

- ANI